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Post by soulviolence on Sept 10, 2014 20:58:00 GMT -5
First time poster, take it easy on me...
I have a Onkyo HT-RC270 with Jamo 507a's up front, Jamo 200 Center, Jamo D500 THX surrounds and Jamo surround 200 for backs. The 507a and D500 are 4 ohm speakers, so I know pushing them is rough. I mainly use everything for TV and Movies with the occasional music session. My system sounds good but I know it could be better. My dilemma is would I create better sound with a UMC-200 and UPA-700 or by getting a UPA-500 and two XPA-100 for the Onkyo? As I said, my system sounds good now but I have roughly 1000 budget. Am I on the right track? Are there other things more experienced people would do or care to share?
On another note, can the 10 percent membership discount be applied through Amazon? Or just direct?
Thanks for any and all help!
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Post by novisnick on Sept 10, 2014 21:10:35 GMT -5
Hi, and welcome to the nut house! So glad you found us. Always room for one more!
When you say " on the right trck " does that mean the $1000.00 is the budget for this installment or is this as far as you want to go? For a while?
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Post by soulviolence on Sept 10, 2014 22:12:21 GMT -5
Thanks for the warm welcome! This is the budget for awhile. I can see ending up in separates eventually. But if this were the end for a while, am I better off with the amps and my current avr, or get new pre-pro and amp? I've read up as much as I can on the UMC-200 and know I'll get 25% off future items. Just didn't know if a upa-700 would be enough for my current speakers to sound really good with the umc-200. I think they would probably sound great with the other combo of amps and my current avr, but maybe the umc-200 is miles ahead SQ wise with just the upa-700?
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Post by soulviolence on Sept 10, 2014 22:19:02 GMT -5
Another thought is the Fusion 8100. Would the SQ be the same as a umc-200 and upa-700? Or is there going to be the same inherent problems others talk about with regards to using an AVR as a pre/pro? Electrical interference, weaker power supply, etc?
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Post by novisnick on Sept 10, 2014 22:33:13 GMT -5
What do you feel your system is kissing? Personally I would always get the XPA-1Ls at their current price. Let the Onkyo drive the other speakers if you are not experiencing any problems with it. That just me though. After some time you can build over the long haul to improve your system but I just don't understand not wanting good quality gear that will have to be replaced, waste of money in my book! Your AVR should do a good job for the near term future and later you can upgrade. Wanting everything now is what we all want, but patient does pay off. This hobby is a long term enjoyment IMHO. THIS IS JUST MY STAB AT IT, YOUR MILAGE MAY DIFFER!!!!! sorry for the dang caps.   |
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Post by deltadube on Sept 10, 2014 22:36:03 GMT -5
Thanks for the warm welcome! This is the budget for awhile. I can see ending up in separates eventually. But if this were the end for a while, am I better off with the amps and my current avr, or get new pre-pro and amp? I've read up as much as I can on the UMC-200 and know I'll get 25% off future items. Just didn't know if a upa-700 would be enough for my current speakers to sound really good with the umc-200. I think they would probably sound great with the other combo of amps and my current avr, but maybe the umc-200 is miles ahead SQ wise with just the upa-700? hey welcome to the nut house... lol.. sounds like an xpa 5 would be a great start to go along time !! for movies and tv.. and the avr can do a couple of back channels.. cheers |
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Post by novisnick on Sept 10, 2014 22:38:02 GMT -5
Thanks for the warm welcome! This is the budget for awhile. I can see ending up in separates eventually. But if this were the end for a while, am I better off with the amps and my current avr, or get new pre-pro and amp? I've read up as much as I can on the UMC-200 and know I'll get 25% off future items. Just didn't know if a upa-700 would be enough for my current speakers to sound really good with the umc-200. I think they would probably sound great with the other combo of amps and my current avr, but maybe the umc-200 is miles ahead SQ wise with just the upa-700? hey welcome to the nut house... lol.. sounds like an xpa 5 would be a great start to go along time !! for movies and tv.. and the avr can do a couple of back channels.. cheers Very true!!! Every system should have one!! |
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Post by redog on Sept 10, 2014 22:38:50 GMT -5
It looks to me like the Jamos are 89db@1 watt and are a 6 ohm load. The upa 700 will handle it just fine. As far as sound qaulity I would go with seperate. Get the umc-200 and upa-700. The upa will have plenty of power with those speakers. 89db@1watt, 92db@2watt, 95db@4watt. 98db@8watt......etc.....
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Post by deltadube on Sept 10, 2014 22:41:37 GMT -5
It looks to me like the Jamos are 89db@1 watt and are a 6 ohm load. The upa 700 will handle it just fine. As far as sound qaulity I would go with seperate. Get the umc-200 and upa-700. The upa will have plenty of power with those speakers. 89db@1watt, 92db@2watt, 95db@4watt. 98db@8watt......etc..... xpa 5 get da power... then maybe add the bad boy mono blocks for 2channel.. xpa 1s |
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Post by frenchyfranky on Sept 10, 2014 22:50:01 GMT -5
Welcome to the lounge. You said that music sessions are occasional, so I think mono for front is overkill, it could be a good idea if you plan to listen more music in future. All of the above suggestions are good, XPA-7 soon should also be a good option.
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Post by novisnick on Sept 10, 2014 23:06:16 GMT -5
Welcome to the lounge. You said that music sessions are occasional, so I think mono for front is overkill, it could be a good idea if you plan to listen more music in future. All of the above suggestions are good, XPA-7 soon should also be a good option. I do agree with you frenchyfranky, and if you remember there have been more then a few forum members that have made the same statements about the amount of two channel they listen to untill they got a pair of MONOBLOCKS.,,,,just saying,,,,,,, |
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Post by soulviolence on Sept 10, 2014 23:08:15 GMT -5
Here's the specs for the 507a: * Frequency Response: 40Hz - 20KHz + 3dB
* Sensitivity: (1W at 1M) 88 dB
* Nominal Impedance: 4 ohms
* Crossover: 150 Hz and 3,000 Hz
* Power Handling: 150 Watts Nominal / 200 Watts Peak
* Cabinet Alignment: Rear Ported
And the D500:
System Type 3 Way closed
Impedance 4
Tweeter (mm/in) 1 x 25 / 1
Woofer (mm/in) 2 x 140 / 5½
Product Finish High gloss black or white
Frequency Response (Hz, +/-3dB) 80 - 20.000
Power Handling (Watts Long/Short Term) 150 / 200
Sensitivity (dB, 2.8V/1m) 89
Overall Dimensions (mm/in, HxWxD) 260 x 450 x 130
Midrange (mm/in) 2 x 76 / 3
Crossover Frequency 400 / 2500
As far as amps go, I was trying to cover all channels for a 7.1 setup is all. If I got the xpa-1l's, I'd need to cover another five channels when switching to separates later. Conversely, I'd have to cover 2 channels with an XPA-5. Figured the wife would be more forgiving when I bought a $600 pre/pro a little later, than if I spent 1000 now on amps, 600 on pre/pro later and still needed to cover the remaining channels. I hope that makes sense. Main thing is sound quality. I feel my current configuration lacks some separation and clarity. My AVR has all the bells and whistles, many of them unused. Figured the sound would improve by beefing it up with some amps. Then I read that the UMC-200 and UPA-700 were worlds ahead in SQ. But how much more so than if I just added more power to my current AVR? Would the UPA-700 sound as good powering my speakers through the UMC-200 as more power through the Onkyo?
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Post by deltadube on Sept 10, 2014 23:13:47 GMT -5
the xpa 5 will make a big difference in the sq .. u will notice right away.. I did.. going from a denon to xpa 3..
running back channels off avr np..
cheers..
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Post by frenchyfranky on Sept 11, 2014 0:09:35 GMT -5
Welcome to the lounge. You said that music sessions are occasional, so I think mono for front is overkill, it could be a good idea if you plan to listen more music in future. All of the above suggestions are good, XPA-7 soon should also be a good option. I do agree with you frenchyfranky, and if you remember there have been more then a few forum members that have made the same statements about the amount of two channel they listen to untill they got a pair of MONOBLOCKS.,,,,just saying,,,,,,, As you know, I am myself in the monoblock society club, I'm already convinced that it's the best for listening music. In the particular case of soulviolence with a tight budget I think that he will be very happy with an XPA-5 and later when he'll fall in love with Emo amp (very soon), he could always make a crazy spending money and buying two more mono's.  |
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Post by garbulky on Sept 11, 2014 0:21:59 GMT -5
Since you said it's for now. I think a UMC-200 coupled to the UPA-700 is the way I would go. In case you don't know the rating on the 700 is all channels driven to full. In reality your surrounds take up very little power with most going either to the center or the front three. So the available horsepower is more than you think.
2 channels driven only the UPA-700 gets close to the power of a UPA-200.
As you spend more you get better etc. But I think moving away from an AVR is the first step. AVR's are usually exercises in compromise for sound quality. Not all the time, but a good amount of it. Going to a nice UMC-200 is a good step.
On the other hand - new formats are coming out and the UMC-200 may be outdated in about an year and a half two years due to HDMI 2 and blu ray 4k. So if you just want to buy an XPA-5 - it's a mighty unit with close to the power of the XPA-2 in 2 channel mode and then later upgrade to whatever standalone processor you want is not a bad idea too.
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Post by frenchyfranky on Sept 11, 2014 0:29:03 GMT -5
+1 garbulky I'm with you to remove the AVR from the equation. |
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Post by creimes on Sept 11, 2014 0:44:13 GMT -5
My vote is clearly an XPA-5, then next step down the road a dedicated pre/pro, I had one and sold it to get 3 XPA-1L's  and I use an older LPA-1 for my rear surrounds and zone speakers, the XPA-5 is an amp you can keep for life but stupid people like me sell and spend more money hahaha. Chad |
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Post by repeetavx on Sept 11, 2014 1:00:01 GMT -5
Soulviolence,
Welcome to the lounge. Well as you can see, you're going to get several different opinions. Most of us believe, that you will end up like us. That after you hear music through your new awesome amp, that not only will you spend more time listening to just music. But that you, (like us) will start wondering and worrying about how much better your system could have sounded, if you had just 'bought up' to even "better" amps.
That being said, I respect your wishes to keep your system focused on 7.1. I listen to everything; TV, Blurays, Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube, throught my "stereo" (5.1) system. I think that your Onkyo is a good preamp/processor. There is no reason not to keep using it and fully realize the investment you have made in it. My fellow Loungers are right in saying that the technology is changing. I don't think now is a good time to buy a new preamp/processor. Yes, I think that a UMC-200 might sound better than your Onkyo, but you would mostly notice that improvement for two channel, which you have stated is not your focus.
So I say yes, buy the UPA-700 and stop. Wait to see if you can hear a difference (we know you will). Then you can decide how to use the balance of that $1K. We think that you will get sucked into two channel and want a seperate amp (or amps) just for that. If not, then start looking for a "better" preamp/processor.
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Post by drtrey3 on Sept 11, 2014 8:58:47 GMT -5
I was running the speakers through a Denon avr. Then I upgraded to a UMC 200. That was a great upgrade! I used the avr as an amp, and the UMC really out performed the not too shabby Denon in terms of ease of use and sound quality. A great upgrade. Then I bought a UPA 200 for the front channels. What a great difference that made! The dynamics popped better, the bass improved, and two channel went way up in terms of how much time I listened! I was using the Denon for the center and surround. Then I got the UPA 500 for the center and surrounds. Again, what a great upgrade! The little 5 channel amp shamed the decent Denon in terms of dynamics and strangely enough treble clarity and extension! I am happy as happy with this setup. Of course, a part of me feels the urge for mono blocks for the front three channels, and moving from the U line to the X or even Reference line, but heck, I got kids and bills, so that might happen in the distant future. But each change and upgrade was just that. Don't overlook the lower Emotiva amps and products, they are still Emotiva. Now the best are certainly better, but you will love what you hear with any Emo product. Happy hunting!
Trey
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Post by laserman35 on Sept 11, 2014 9:10:40 GMT -5
If you can stretch your budget just A little more and downgrade to a 5.1 system for now i would go with XPA-5 and the UMC-200.
These are both very good performers and you may not outgrow them like the UPA-700 option. I changed my setup for a couple of months from the XPA-5 to the UPA-500, And i can tell you the UPA-500 was nice but the XPA-5 was more of the end game amp to me.
I just hate for you to get something that may need changed later.
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and I use an older LPA-1 for my rear surrounds and zone speakers, the XPA-5 is an amp you can keep for life but stupid people like me sell and spend more money hahaha.
